3 nights takamatsu next march

hi all. trying to figure out how best to spend our time here. we will arrive in takamatsu after a week in kyoto with day trips to uji and nara, himeji and maybe kobe). we will have the setouchi pass and will activate it for these trips, our takamatsu trips, our trip to hiroshima/miyajima and last trip to fukuoka where we depart our final day. good use of the pass.

question is how to spend our 3 days in takamatsu as i have never been. can we tour ritsurin gardens and
shikoku mura our first day? not sure where each is in relation to the other. next day we will take ferry to naoshima and tour around. plan to rent ebikes to get around. would appreciate your favorite spots here as we wont' have time to see it all. for third day i am confused. do we tour shikoku? seems difficult without a car. or day trip to kurashikiki? or something else? we are staying at j r clement so central.

many thanks

Depending on arrival time, covering Ritsuin and Shikoku Mura might be a push. Are you visiting the castle ruins or covered shopping too?
For Naoshima, the fast ferry is good, but they only start selling the tickets 20 minutes before the boat departs which is a bit annoying. I tend to take the fast boat across and the slower ferry back as it has better times.
For a third day in Takamatsu - that is your choice, but heading back to Okayama for the garden/castle combo or down to Kurashiki makes for a good day.

You can do everything on Naoshima in one day. Take ferry to Miyanoura then take bus all the way to Benesse Art site. Walk from West to East stopping at the museums on the way then take the Benesse shuttle bus back to take the city bus to the Honmura area. If you have to skip something it would be some of the art house projects (note that some are only open on specific days). Make sure to stop by the Tadao Ando Museum. Given that you are returning to Takamatsu you should have plenty of time to see everything, but I recommend getting the first ferry if possible. Also there is a new museum being opened in the Honmura area in 2025 not sure when it is opening though.
https://benesse-artsite.jp/en/art/nnmoa.html#:~:text=Naoshima%20New%20....

I did Ritsurin and Inujima in one day (stayed on Naoshima) ... It was a lot of time spent on ferries, but I had it planned out and executed perfectly.

Ritsurin
https://www.instagram.com/p/DBMLeEnOACO/

Naoshima
https://www.instagram.com/p/DBUNxjovgES/
https://www.instagram.com/p/DBUPhoTPPJI/

Inujima
https://www.instagram.com/p/DBJiiUdsQkO/
https://www.instagram.com/p/DBJk_CFMr1R/

we will visit Himeji before so doubt we will visit castle ruins. Husband not into shopping like daughter was so doubt that will be a priority.

Wondering if kurashiki should be an overnight and then just 2 nights in takamatsu or else we are backtracking before our visit to hiroshima/miyajima...

Kurashiki is worth a visit, but you will probably only need a half day there maybe less.

Patrick, given that tickets now need to be purchased in advance, and some are for timed entry, how would you do this? thanks